UK – lifetime limit on entrepreneurs’ relief reduced from £10 to £1M

March 11, 2020 — Fusion DigiNet

Rishi SunakIn the UK Budget delivered today (March 11) Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, reduced the lifetime limit on entrepreneurs’ relief to £1 million.

Entrepreneurs’ Relief provides for a lower rate of Capital Gains Tax (10%) to be paid in the UK when disposing of all or part of a business where certain criteria are met. Until today it was subject to a lifetime limit of £10 million of qualifying gains. This measure reduces the lifetime limit to £1 million for Entrepreneurs’ Relief qualifying disposals made on or after today.

It means from today individuals who dispose of all or part of their business; individuals who dispose of shares in their personal company; and trustees who dispose of business assets will now pay 10 per cent Capital Gains Tax on the first £1 million of qualifying gains and 20% thereafter. Previously they paid 10 per cent Capital Gains Tax on the first £10 million of qualifying gains; and then 20%.

Here is what Sunak said of Entrepreneurs’ Relief in today’s budget speech.

Expensive – at a cost of over £2bn a year.

Ineffective – with less than 1 in 10 claimants saying the relief has been an incentive to set up a business.

And unfair – with nearly three quarters of the cost going to just 5,000 individuals.

Just because it is called Entrepreneurs’ Relief doesn’t mean that it’s entrepreneurs who mainly benefit.

For all these reasons, I have heard representations that I should completely abolish it.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies have criticised it.

The Resolution Foundation called it “the UK’s worst tax break”.

I’m sympathetic to that argument.

But at the same time, we shouldn’t discourage those genuine entrepreneurs who do rely on the relief.

We need more risk-taking and creativity in this country, not less.

So I have decided not to fully abolish Entrepreneurs’ Relief today.

Instead, I will do what the Federation of Small Businesses called “a sensible reform” and reduce the lifetime limit from £10m to £1m.

80% of small business owners are unaffected by today’s changes.

Those reforms save £6bn over the next five years – and I’m giving most of that money straight back to business through three additional measures.

The Research and Development Expenditure credit will be increased from 12 to 13% – a tax cut worth £2,400 on a typical R&D claim.

The Structures and Buildings Allowance will be increased from 2 to 3%, giving an extra £100,000 of relief if you’re investing in a building worth £10m.

And, to cut taxes on employment, I will deliver our promise to increase the Employment Allowance by a third to £4,000.

That’s a tax cut this April for nearly half a million small businesses.

UK

Policy Paper

The Capital Gains Tax Entrepreneurs’ Relief policy paper published today by Her Majesty’s Government is published here

Previous articles Fusion DigiNet articles about Capital Gains Tax and Entrepreneurs’ Relief

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